Insiders Blog

Hello again, race fans! This is Atlanta Motor Speedway President and GM Ed Clark with the latest installment of the Inside Line, the exclusive newsletter for you, the members of the Atlanta Motor Speedway Insiders Club!Things are getting pretty ramped up here at the Speedway as the start of Friday Night Drags & Show-N-Shine as well as Thursday Thunder gets closer. Of course, the AdvoCare 500 is also drawing nearer each day. It’ll be here before we know it!

We’ve also recently announced an inaugural event that is coming up Aug. 10 – Global Rallycross Atlanta! I had a chance to ride along in a Global Rallycross car with Tanner Foust when we announced the event, and boy, what a rush! It’s going to be incredible seeing those cars here in August.

Now, let’s talk some NASCAR!

The race for a championship has taken a pretty major turn within the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. With Denny Hamlin’s back injury expecting to cause him to miss about six weeks, which would account for about five races, his hopes of winning a championship would appear bleak.

But don’t count Hamlin out, as his best friend may be the wild card in the Chase for the Championship qualifying format. Don’t forget, the final two spots in the Chase are filled out by drivers ranked in positions 11 through 20 in the points standings who have the most race victories. If Hamlin can finish in the top 20 and win a handful of races, he may be able to sneak into the Chase.

You want to talk about something compelling to watch? You’re setting it up for a driver coming off an injury eager to prove a point. It has all the makings of must-see racing, and you’ll have an in-person view of it here on Labor Day Weekend!

Ask The GM

I’m coming to the race for the first time at Atlanta this Labor Day Weekend and am looking for a hotel to stay at that’s budget-friendly. Any suggestions?

First of all, we’re excited you’ll be joining us for the first time! We’re glad to hear that you’ll be joining us on Labor Day Weekend.

As far as hotels go, we’re pleased to have built up a list of fan-friendly hotels for our fans to utilize during race weekend. These hotels agree to offer fans reasonable rates during NASCAR race weekend here at AMS and not require a multiple-night stay.

Our fan-friendly hotels are listed on our Web site, and as Labor Day Weekend gets closer, hotels will be added on to the list as they partner with us. You can find it at http://www.atlantamotorspeedway.com/fanzone/hotels/.

We look forward to seeing you at the track!

Have a question about Atlanta Motor Speedway?

E-mail it to insiders@atlantamotorspeedway.com and you will have a chance to have your question answered in a future Inside Line newsletter!

Thanks for reading, and we look forward to seeing you on Labor Day Weekend!

Hello, race fans! This is Atlanta Motor Speedway President Ed Clark! Welcome to the Inside Line, the exclusive newsletter for you, the members of the Atlanta Motor Speedway Insiders Club!

Here, you can expect, twice a month, exclusive insight into Atlanta Motor Speedway and racing that you won’t get anywhere else. Plus, you’ll also find who the winners of race weekend prizes set aside just for you are! Remember – you can only win these prizes by being an AMS Insider, a select group of which you are part of!

Let’s talk some racing!

While it’s still early in the season, one thing that’s already pretty clear is that the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series is stacked with drivers eager to prove a point.

Carl Edwards and Kyle Busch both missed the Chase for the Championship last year. So before the season even began, there was plenty of pressure on both drivers, not to mention their respective teams.

So far, both have shown that they’re rebounding and doing so quite well. Carl Edwards snapped his winless drought in Phoenix and Busch had a strong car at Las Vegas, finishing the top five and was a factor for much of the race.

And then there are last year’s leading championship contenders, Jimmie Johnson and Brad Keselowski. Sometimes, a hard fight can drain a race team entering the next season. You saw that especially in the case of Tony Stewart and Carl Edwards.

Last year, coming off after a nailbiting race for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship, both saw a drop-off in their results. Stewart won a combined three races, but was winless in the second half of the season, posting four top-five finishes after his July win at Daytona.

Edwards was winless in 2012 and failed to qualify for the Chase.

As for Johnson and Keselowski, neither has missed a beat. Johnson finished first and second in the season’s first two races, was sixth a week ago and most recently had a strong finish undone at Bristol due to a cut tire late in the race.

Keselowski has finished no worse than fourth through four races and currently leads the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series points standings. Keselowski's string of four top-five finishes in a row matches the longest stretch in his career within the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.

Both drivers are wasting little time showing that the road to a championship likely runs through beating them on the track.

Ask The GM

What’s the best way to get a driver autograph during race weekend?

One thing that separates NASCAR from other major sporting events is the chance to interact with some of its biggest stars.

The best way to get a driver’s autograph is to attend an appearance by a driver during race weekend. Appearances are set up by each driver’s race team either at a driver’s souvenir hauler in the AMS Fan Zone or at other nearby locations.

Close to race weekend, the Atlanta Motor Speedway Web site, www.atlantamotorspeedway.com, will post a compiled list of driver appearances during race weekend at Atlanta Motor Speedway.